Most children who box swing madly into the air, hoping to connect with something resembling an opponent.

    The same can’t be said for brothers Jett and Bode Baker. No, their boxing coach, John Baker, teaches them to be patient. He teaches them discipline. He doesn’t teach them to fight; he teaches them to box.

    “At Gate City, we teach them this and not to swing wild,” Baker said.

    The training paid off, and both fighters, 8-year-old Bode and 10-year-old Jett, went on to win their respective weight divisions at the Pete Suazo/PAL Boxing Invitational in Salt Lake Cit Aug. 16.

    Fights for children last three rounds, and fighters need to connect with a specific part of the glove in order for the punch to officially land. Though Jett’s opponent made contact, his swings didn’t strike. It didn’t help that Jett was dodging and juking the punches. The hands that were landing were easily deflected by Jett’s blocks.

    “He’s very good at catching the punches,” Baker said. “Then he would counter punch, and he had the kid almost turning around sometimes because he was just digging into his body and then going upstairs.”

    When Jett started training two years ago, he was too heavy. He would be able to train until he dropped his weight, and he wouldn’t be able to fight. He took it upon himself to change his diet and increase the intensity of his workouts.

    The practice paid dividends, and he dropped 15 pounds so he could climb in the ring. Now, he’s on a six-fight winning streak with no signs of letting up.

    “He’s just a big-hearted kid,” Baker said. “I mean a 10-year-old to take it upon himself to eat right, drop down and stay that weight for six fights in a row is just unheard of.”

    His little brother Bode is following in Jett’s footsteps. His fight had the same result, and he took the same route to get there: patience and counters.

    As his opponent swung away, Bode kept himself poised. Jab after jab, Bode side-stepped punches and kept himself from getting too winded.

    “He would stand back and let the kid miss and counter punch with three and four punch combos,” Baker said. “The other coaches around the Salt Lake Valley came up and commented on how experienced he looked.”

    According to Baker, boxing at a young age teaches the kids what it’s like to work hard for something. More important, however, is how they go about the process.

    “We tell our young fighters down here that this is not something that they use to bully people,” he said. “This is something that they use to learn to control their anger, and there are avenues to get their aggression out. We teach them (that) to get to be successful takes a lot of hard work.”